Children's Home run by Esland North Limited in Sheffield

Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 1 Registered provider: Esland North Limited Full inspection Inspected under the social care common inspection framework

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Information about this children’s home

The home is owned and managed by a private provider. It offers care for up to 2 children who may experience social and emotional difficulties.

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Information about this children’s home

At the time of this inspection, 2 children were living at the home.

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Information about this children’s home

The manager registered with Ofsted in December 2025.

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Overall experiences and progress of

children and young people, taking into account

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good

How well children and young people are helped and protected good

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good

The effectiveness of leaders and managers good

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good

The children’s home provides effective services that meet the requirements for good.

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good

Overall judgement at last inspection: good

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good

Enforcement action since last inspection: none Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 2

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Inspection date Inspection type Inspection judgement

29/07/2025 Full Good Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 3

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Summary of findings

Since the last inspection, 2 children have moved into the home, and one child has moved out. Transitions for children moving into the home were positive and well planned. However, one child moved out of the home in an unplanned way.

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Summary of findings

The children are settled and making progress in all areas of their lives. However, staff found it difficult to help the child who moved out to settle in the home. The child struggled to build meaningful relationships with staff, which hindered their progress.

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Summary of findings

Risks for children reduced after they moved into the home. Incidents are rare and, when they do occur, staff respond appropriately. However, for one child, incidents increased and new risks emerged. Leaders and managers decided that staff could not meet the child’s needs, and the child subsequently moved out of the home.

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Summary of findings

The manager is skilled and experienced. She is child centred in her approach and provides the team with effective leadership. Changes to the staff team have led to some challenges; however, the manager has worked hard to ensure that children receive continuous and consistent care.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s day-to-day experiences are mixed. Both children living at the home are happy and settled, and they are making progress in all areas of their lives. Staff help children to develop confidence and independence at a pace that reflects their individual starting points. However, despite staff’s efforts, they struggled to help one child settle into the home and establish positive relationships with them. The child remained unsettled, which limited the progress they made.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Education is a meaningful part of the children’s lives. They enjoy attending school and are making progress. Staff understand the barriers that some children face in education. They work collaboratively with education professionals and advocate for children to ensure that they receive the right support.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children’s health outcomes are improving because of the help and support that they receive. Staff maintain clear oversight of children’s personal care routines, health appointments and emerging health needs. When concerns arise or children have unmet health needs, staff advocate effectively on their behalf. This helps to ensure that the right assessments are carried out and that children can access external support services. Children identified as needing support with their mental and emotional health are accessing therapy.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

Children are provided with a wide range of activities in line with their hobbies and interests. Children’s artwork is displayed around the home, and their contribution to Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 4 transforming the garden space reflects their individual personalities. They enjoy walking, visiting the seaside, bike rides and trampolining. Despite staff’s efforts, one child declined to take part in activities with them.

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Overall experiences and progress of children and young people: good

The home is clean, warm and well maintained, creating a calm, homely atmosphere that helps children feel settled and secure. Communal areas are tidy and inviting, and children can personalise their bedrooms with decor that reflects their tastes.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

The risks for both children living at the home reduced soon after they moved in. One child was subject to restrictions on their liberty under a court order. Staff provided the child with guidance and support and carried out planned, focused direct work with them. This work, together with robust multi-agency safety planning, resulted in the child no longer being subject to the order. Risks for the child continue to reduce.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children said that they feel safe living in the home. Clear and predictable routines and trusting relationships help children to feel protected and reassured. Staff respond promptly when worries arise, and they remain attentive to children’s emotional cues. This strengthens children’s sense of security and trust in the adults who care for them.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children’s individual risk assessments and safety plans are detailed and identify all known risks. Staff are clear about the steps to take to safeguard children. The strategies in place to mitigate the risks to individual children are sometimes restrictive, which prevents children from taking balanced risks.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Children have reduced the frequency with which they go missing from home. Children’s missing-from-home plans are detailed, provide staff with clear guidance and are kept under review by the manager. When a child goes missing, staff respond proactively by searching for them and following their individual missing-from-home plans.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Staff talk to the children about risks and engage them in regular conversations to understand how they are feeling. This helps children to develop better coping strategies and gain a better understanding of any difficult emotions they may be feeling.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Serious incidents are rare. When children struggle to manage their emotions, staff use their relationships with the children to respond. However, because staff struggled to build relationships with one child, this approach proved difficult. This child became increasingly unsettled, and risks to the child and incidents increased. Leaders and managers decided that the child’s needs could not be safely met by staff, and the child moved out of the home.

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How well children and young people are helped and protected: good

Consequences are rarely used to manage behaviour. However, when they have been used, they have not always been restorative, and they do not always clearly link to the behaviour of concern. Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 5

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager is skilled and experienced. She maintains effective oversight of the home and has a clear understanding of each child’s needs and how best to support them. Her child-centred approach and thoughtful decision-making promote consistency for children.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager provides staff with support and effective leadership. Staff receive regular supervision, and they report feeling valued and supported by the manager. Team meetings take place regularly, providing staff with the opportunity to discuss children’s plans, reflect on practice and refresh their safeguarding knowledge.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Staff are provided with a range of core training. Training is kept under review by the manager. The manager ensures that staff are provided with additional child-specific training to meet the needs of every child who lives at the home. There is an additional layer of support from the in-house clinical team, which provides staff with additional training, guidance and support.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Children are supported when they wish to raise a complaint. Complaints are taken seriously and are investigated in line with the home’s policy. Children are kept updated throughout the process and receive an outcome in a timely manner.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

Changes to the staff team have led to some challenges for the manager. However, the manager has worked hard to ensure that children are provided with continuous and consistent care. New staff are recruited in line with safer recruitment procedures.

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The effectiveness of leaders and managers: good

The manager has built positive working relationships with other professionals and understands the importance of multi-agency working. She is generally a strong advocate for children, ensuring that they receive the right support. However, it is not clear whether leaders and managers involved the placing authority in safety planning for one child. Leaders and managers have not challenged others when a child’s plan was not being implemented. Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 6

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Statutory requirements

This section sets out the actions that the registered person(s) must take to meet the Care Standards Act 2000, The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. The registered person(s) must comply within the given timescales.

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Requirement Due date

In meeting the quality standards, the registered person must, and must ensure that staff—

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Requirement Due date

seek to involve each child’s placing authority effectively in the child’s care, in accordance with the child’s relevant plans; and

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Requirement Due date

if the registered person considers, or staff consider, a placing authority’s or a relevant person’s performance or response to be inadequate in relation to their role, challenge the placing authority or the relevant person to seek to ensure that each child’s needs are met in accordance with the child’s relevant plans. (Regulation 5 (a)(c)) 11 October 2026

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Recommendation

 The registered person should ensure that any consequences used to address poor behaviour are restorative in nature and help children recognise the impact of their behaviour on themselves, other children, the staff caring for them, and the wider community. In some cases, it will be important for children to offer reparation in some form to anyone hurt by their behaviour, and the staff in the home should be trained to help the child understand and carry out this responsibility. (‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’, page 46, paragraph 9.38)

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Information about this inspection

Inspectors have looked closely at the experiences and progress of children and young people, using the social care common inspection framework. This inspection was carried out under the Care Standards Act 2000 to assess the effectiveness of the service, how it meets the core functions of the service as set out in legislation, and to consider how well it complies with The Children’s Homes (England) Regulations 2015 and the ‘Guide to the Children’s Homes Regulations, including the quality standards’. Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 7

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Children’s home details

Registered provider: Esland North Limited

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Children’s home details

Registered provider address: Suites 1 and 5 Riverside Business Centre, Foundry Lane, Belper, Derbyshire DE56 0RN

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Inspectors

Rachel Webster, Social Care Inspector Mariam Sawaiz, Social Care Inspector Inspection report for children’s home: 2808233 8 achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked-after children, safeguarding and child protection.

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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Inspectors

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